


Too Short!

by Andromeda612



Category: SK8 the Infinity (Anime)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Cute Kyan Reki, Fluff, Found Family, Gen, Humor, Joe and Cherry Are The Parents, Kyan Reki Deserves Nice Things, Kyan Reki is a Ray of Sunshine, M/M, Or I Guess Is Humor, Pining Hasegawa Langa, Protective Cherry, Protective Hasegawa Langa, Protective Miya, Protective Shadow, fuck adam, fuck the palm trees, no beta we die like man, protective Joe
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-11
Updated: 2021-03-11
Packaged: 2021-03-18 13:08:23
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 13,178
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29983323
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Andromeda612/pseuds/Andromeda612
Summary: An asshole dares Reki to beef to prove he is better than 'the redhead that hangs around with Snow' but things don't go as planned, Langa has his first gay panic and have a word with our asshole.
Relationships: Chinen Miya & Higa Hiromi | Shadow & Kyan Reki, Chinen Miya & Kyan Reki, Hasegawa Langa & Kyan Reki, Hasegawa Langa/Kyan Reki, Kyan Reki & Nanjo Kojiro | Joe, Kyan Reki & Sakurayashiki Kaoru | Cherry Blossom, Nanjo Kojiro | Joe/Sakurayashiki Kaoru | Cherry Blossom
Comments: 19
Kudos: 466





	Too Short!

**Author's Note:**

> This end up being a lot longer than I expected, but well I hope you like it.  
> I hc Reki as being sensitive to bright and intermittent lights, but that is just me projecting, also Reki being a mom friend is my fav hc so far so of course I'm using it. 
> 
> English is not my first language so I apology for any mistakes.

During his race against Joe something was off, but Langa couldn’t place what. Fortunately for him Reki did, from his place in the crowd he noticed something was off with his board, as soon as realized it he basically flew to the line start of the race, took some random board from a random skater and skated as fast as he could to catch up to Langa and fix his board— such a luck he always carries a small kit of tools— he arrived just in time as Langa fell from the board because of the flaw on it, fortunately the fall wasn’t as serious as it seemed, his injuries were small even if a little bloody. 

Reki simply stopped in front of him and looked at him looking for signs of a serious injury, not watching any he sat on the ground and took the board, he started to repair the modification he made on the wheels.

Langa felt sore and a little dizzy from the fall but the only thing he could focus on was the fact that Reki was there, he was fixing his board, but most important, he _was there_. 

Langa didn’t think twice and decided to do as his mother advised, being honest. “Reki, I…” But was cut by the redhead. 

“I’m still mad at you” He stated, his eyes never leaving the board, Langa’s heart sank at those words but a sparkle of hope still erupted on his chest for the mere fact that Reki was there, fixing his board and then… 

“Are… a-are you okay? That seemed like a rough fall” He whispered, still fixing something on the wheels, but the worry in his voice couldn’t be missed, Reki was worried for him. Langa hasn’t felt so happy since they fought under the rain. It was just the sound of the tools on Reki’s hands what reminded him that he needed to answer. 

“I-I’m fine, it was less serious that it seemed, just a couple of scratches” he replied softly enough for just Reki to hear, even if they were the only ones there, he was scared that if he talked too loud Reki would just disappear, as ridiculous as the ideas was, he has missed the redhead so much that having him so near, helping him as he always did, it was like a gift he was too afraid to lose. 

Reki hummed in response, when he was done with the board he handed it to Langa, finally looking at him for the first time in days. His eyes were a little red— _has he been crying? —_ the blue-haired boy also noticed dark bags under his eyes— Reki already had horrible sleep habits but _how much sleep has he been neglecting these days?!_ —but what shook his heart the most were Reki’s eyes themselves, his amber eyes that were always so bright and full of excitement and energy, the eyes that were like a light in his life were now so dull and empty, like the extinguished light of a candle, Langa didn’t like it, Reki’s eyes were mean to be happy and brightening in awe, no this sad and dull. 

What made it worse… it was his fault, Langa hurt Reki by breaking their promise, because of him Reki was sad, because of him Reki’s eyes were like that. He never meant to hurt Reki like that, he needed to fix this, he was sure he couldn’t bear another day with Reki avoiding him, nor he could bear the knowledge that Reki was not happy. 

As he took the board from Reki he also grasped his wrist. 

“Wait! Reki I know you are mad but please let’s talk, I know I hurt you and I really regret it but please!” Reki was looking at the ground, but he wasn’t making any attempt to free his wrist. “I miss you” he whispered the last part, but Reki heard it and his heart skipped a bit… Langa, he really… he too? 

“I…” The redhead started softly, so softly that if it wasn’t for the fact Langa had all of his attention on him, he may have missed it, the sparkle of hope in his chest grew a little more; Reki took a shaky breath “I miss you too” the smaller of the boys cringed a little at how his voice broke at the last part, but he was tired and he felt like he couldn’t contain his feeling anymore, despite all the cry he made the days before inside he felt like a tsunami and he really, _really_ missed Langa, avoiding him was painful, more when he saw that the blue-haired boy also seemed as sad as he felt. 

His presence at “S” that night was proof that despite what he said to Langa that night, that despite how much he still thought he was not enough for Langa, how much he hated himself for being a coward and a bad friend— because he knew avoiding Langa wasn’t doing any good but he didn’t had the courage or the heart to face him— he still cared, he still cared so much, he still felt proud of Langa doing so well, he still felt excited to see his friends racing. He still wanted to be by their side… to be by Langa’s side.

Maybe it was all the time he missed him, maybe was Joe’s advice or maybe the fact that Langa also missed him but this time Reki didn’t want to go, he didn’t want to leave his side no matter how much his mind kept telling him he was just wasting his time, no matter how much it kept screaming that he was not worth it, he wanted to fix things and Langa did too, maybe there was hope for him. 

Langa’s heart beat strong in his chest upon hearing that Reki also missed him. He didn’t hate him and that made Langa so, so happy; Reki was still looking down but that didn’t matter, without thinking Langa engulfed his best friend in a tight hug, in that moment, with Reki between his arms Langa noticed how much he craved the other’s touch, Reki has always been very touchy, it was his way to show affection and even if Langa wasn’t a fan of physical contact when it was Reki it was always fine, this days without his high fives or random hugs, or even Reki just messing his hair has been empty. 

If he was glad to be able to hold Reki, he was sure he could have cried of pure relief when he felt Reki’s arms wrapping around him, returning the hug. He didn’t know how much time they stayed like that, just holding each other close and tight, but he knew that if he could he would have stayed like that forever, however when he felt some wetness on his shirt he panicked a little, Reki was crying. He pulled just a little to see his face. 

“Reki?! Are you okay? Please tell me what’s wrong!” Reki lifted his face to see his best friend, his vision was blurred and he could feel something warm falling from his cheeks, _when did he start to cry?_ Despite the tears he was still able to see the concerned face of the boy in front of him, there was so much they needed to say, to talk, to listen… but this was not the moment nor the place, so reluctantly Reki broke their embrace and spoke before Langa could panic. 

“We need to talk, but not right now, you have a race to finish, if you hurry up you will be able to catch up with Joe, we can talk after the race” He said in a voice that was small and shaky, but a lot less empty and defeated than before. 

Langa honestly didn’t care about the race anymore, these days without Reki and the conversation he had with his mother helped him to realize some things, the thrill and the way his heart was so loud when he skated, that was all thanks to Reki, without him skating felt empty, boring, wrong, not even the idea of skating against Adam could give him that excited chill he wanted, nothing could… just Reki, he just wanted to fix things as soon as possible. 

“But Reki…” 

“But nothing, I didn’t rush all the way here just for you to give up!” Reki exclaimed with a little more energy, knowing him Langa knew there was no point in arguing but… 

Langa swallowed, his heart racing from the nerves “W-Will you wait for me at the end line? Will you be there?” He asked, almost scared of the answer. Reki brushed away his tears and punched him in the chest. 

“I’ll be there… I promise” and that was all Lange needed to _finally_ breathe in peace, he put his board on the ground and was ready to leave, however... 

Just as Reki turned to walk towards the end line to wait for Langa, he felt two arms wrap strongly around his waist from behind, and then Langa’s voice was whispering gently in his ear. 

“Thank you, Reki” After a few seconds Langa let go of him and continued with the race, Reki turned to see the back of his friend, getting smaller with each meter he skated, this time, even if just a little bit, Reki felt that he would catch up to him. 

Langa lost, which was not a surprise taking on account all the time he lost while Reki was fixing his board and then talking to him, but Langa didn’t care, the fact that Reki would be there waiting for him was enough to make his heart beat excited in his ribcage, to make him feel again that thrill, to make him happy. 

And sure enough, as he crossed the end line just some seconds after Joe he didn’t pay attention to the cheers around him nor the small congratulation from Joe’s part, he immediately started to search for red hair and amber eyes, it didn’t take much for him to find Reki, just as he promised he was there, smiling softly at him like he did every time Langa fall from his skateboard and was trying to make sure he was okay, again Langa didn’t think twice and the next thing he knew he was engulfing Reki in a hug, pretty much like the redhead did whenever he won a race or nail a trick, Reki returned the embrace and in that moment it was just the two of them, it didn’t matter the crowd around them, or Joe, Cherry, Miya and Shadow who were approaching after noticing Reki was there, heck! Not even Adam— who was already making a dramatic monologue about how a shame was that Snow lost— mattered for them. 

After what felt like hours they finally pulled apart, though Langa kept a firm yet gentle hand wrapped around Reki’s wrist. He took his board under his free arm and walked with Reki outside “S” they walked until they reached the same stone stair they hid in the day the police stopped his and Adam’s race. They stayed in silence for a few seconds before the two of them talked at the same time. 

“I’m sorry” 

“I’m sorry” 

Both teens looked at each other in surprise… Langa was the first one to collect himself. 

“No, Reki, this was all my fault, I hurt you breaking our promise, I never stopped to think about how you felt, I know you only cared for my safety… I never meant to hurt you Reki, it is the last thing I ever want so please forgive me, I miss you” Langa made sure to watch Reki directly in the eyes, to talk clearly and firmly, to make sure Reki would see all the honesty in his words, and was glad to see some of the light returning in Reki’s eyes. 

The redhead for his part was so relieved to know the other also missed him, that he was not the only one suffering from the distance… but he also felt guilty, it was not all Langa’s fault, yeah, he was hurt because he broke the promise, but that was not the only thing, maybe if he had said something before… but he never thought his insecurities were important, he always thought all of that was on his mind… _For the people that care about you, your concerns and fear will be important, they are important dear…_ His mother always says that to him whenever he starts to spiral in his self deprecating thoughts. Maybe he should listen to her. 

He swallowed the knot on his throat and kept eye contact with Langa. “I forgive you Langa” the blue-haired boy instantly brightened at that “But…” that made him deflate a little but soon his expression changed for a softer one after hearing what Rei said “I should apologize too, is true I was mad and hurt because of the promise but there is more and I never really talked about it, I just lashed out to you, you didn’t deserve that… “ 

Langa let go of the wrist he was still holding to properly hold Reki’s hand, with free hand he pet Reki’s hair in a manner he hoped was reassuring. “What is it, Reki? You can tell me everything” he whispered softly. Reki's bottom lip trembled and it took all of him to not cry again. 

“I’m scared” He whispered so softly that Langa was barely able to hear him, but he did. 

“Reki, I told you even if I got hurt I won’t stop skating I…” He was cut by a small shake of Reki’s head, Reki looked down. 

“I’m scared of being left behind… that you would notice I’m not good enough and would just leave me… like everybody else does once they realize I’m just an annoying nobody” Reki’s voice was so small and it sounded so lost that Langa could feel his heart breaking, how is that someone so bright and warm like Reki could think such a thing about himself? Who gave him those ideas? Whoever it was, Langa was furious beyond belief with that person, but he was also angry with himself, how is it that he never noticed Reki was having troubles? That he was doubting himself? He should have known something was off, Reki seemed distracted and now he was sure the reason he didn’t notice him waiting for him in the usual place, or when he walked home alone was not because he was thinking too much about a new board. Reki always seemed to know when something was off about him, but he totally missed when something was off about Reki. 

But now he knew and he was going to help, just like Reki always helped him, and he vowed to himself that he would be more careful, that he won’t let his best friend, the person he loves suffer alone in silence again, not if he could help it. 

With a new determination he moved the hand that was petting the red locks of his friend to hold his chin, he lifted it softly so Reki could see at his eyes. 

“Reki… I don’t know who the hell gave you that idea but that has to be the stupidest thing I have ever heard, Reki I won’t leave you behind because I can’t stand the idea of you not being by my side!” He was following his mother’s advice, he was being honest, even if he wasn’t sure about confessing his feeling anytime soon— because that talk with his mom was very enlightening and this knowledge was still too new— he really needed to assure Reki how important he was for him. 

Reki looked at him surprised, his eyes shining from the tears that were still forming in them and with something that looked like hope but his insecurities were drowning it, the Canadian was more than ready to save it though. 

“B-but… Langa do you have any idea of how amazing you are? You are one of the better skaters I’ve seen and it took you merely weeks! And I… I can’t catch up with you, or with Miya or Shadow or anybody, I got stuck… I-I’m just me, the lowlife redhead that just hangs out with Snow” At this point Reki couldn’t contain his cries anymore, his voice came broken and Langa could feel his heart sinking with every sob. 

“A-and every time you went higher… I felt so proud of you but at the same time I couldn’t help but think how more unreachable you were getting, and everybody said that I just don’t matter and they are right because I’m not good enough and I didn’t want to be left behind so I push you aside before that could happen but it was just worse, because I missed you and I’m a horrible friend for that and… “ but Langa didn’t want to hear more, he _couldn’t_ hear more of Reki deprecating himself like this. 

His hands moved to cup the redhead’s face, his thumbs stroking his cheeks and brushing the tears that kept falling for those beautiful eyes. He could feel his own eyes getting wet and a knot forming in his throat but he talked firmly. 

“Reki, that’s not true” Before Reki could retort he talked again.

“Reki you are an amazing skater, most of what you know was self taught, you were the reason I started skating in the first place, you were the one who taught me, the one who made a skateboard that would fit my needs, if not were for you I wouldn’t be that great, there wouldn’t be Snow without you” Reki was speechless and Langa wasn’t done yet. 

“The only reason I really love skating is you” he declared as a matter of fact, the last few days made him discover it was. 

“It is funny, and it is exciting… but without you there, either skating with me, or teaching me new things, or just being there it feels all empty, is just not the same without you” Langa stated sincerely, Reki was still crying but he didn’t feel the same sorrow he has been felt the last days, he was still insecure about himself, there was still that little pain in his chest, but now it felt less suffocating, like some weight was lifted from his heart, he felt like he could breathe again. 

“I’m sorry” it was all Reki could say between sobs and the tightness in his throat, Langa simply brushed away more tears and leaned over to press a chaste kiss on the redhead’s forehead. 

“I forgive you, Reki and thanks for telling me this” Langa whispered, the shorter of the two could feel the warmth of Langa’s breath against the skin of his forehead, it felt nice. The Canadian locked eyes with him again. 

“Nothing of what you think about you not being enough is true, no matter what others say, you are amazing, your skating is amazing and you are total genius when it comes to the physics of this, when it comes to build boards and you are not a bad friend either Reki, you are always taking care of everybody to the point that you forget to take care of yourself too, even Miya called you a mom friend once” Langa was sure Miya would kill him if he ever finds out he revealed that— the boy was embarrassed when he said that and basically threatened Langa to not tell anybody— but for assure Reki just how amazing he was it was worth it, especially when he could hear a small giggle escaping from Reki's mouth, it was like music for his ears. 

“No matter how many times I’ll have to repeat how awesome you are I’ll do it until you believe it” Langa stated with such a seriousness that, under other circumstances, would have made Reki laugh, however this time it made him feel safe, his cries stopped and his best friend brushed away the last tears that were falling down his cheeks, Reki leaned into the gentle touch of the person he loved, because the absence also helped him to understand more about his feelings for his best friend; he was in love and even if at the moment it hurt, because he didn’t felt worth it, even if he still doubt he would be confessing any time soon, right now those feelings felt so right, it made him feel warm, and for now that was enough. 

“Let’s be honest with each other for now on, we will talk when something is wrong and we will listen to each other, okay?” Reki said after some seconds in silence, his voice was raspy from the crying but it held some of the usual warmth Langa was used to. 

“Yeah…” the blue-haired boy replied, raising his pinky, Reki gladly intertwined his pinky with Langa’s. “Is a promise” 

After that they just stayed there for who knows how long, just embracing each other, feeling relieved and happy for being together again, as it should be. 

That was like two months ago, they discussed a lot of things, about how to proceed if anything of the like happened again. With time Reki came back to be the ray of sunshine he is, he came back to “S” and to talk with the others, they worked a lot in their communication and on Reki’s self confidence. It is a long path but they are getting there. 

Some of the things that changed is that now Langa is a little more aware of the things that people say about him at “S” but most important he is aware of what they say about Reki. And he is not happy with what he hears. Not a little bit. 

Who gave these random people the right to choose Reki’s worth without even getting to know him? Who are they to say he is a lowlife or just some boring weight on Lagan’s back? They don’t know a shit about him, they don’t know him like he does, like Cherry, Miya, Joe or Shadow, so he doesn’t understand why the hell they have the nerve to talk about him in such a way! 

Every time they heard something he is fast to assure Reki that whatever bad thing that is said is not true, either straightforward saying so, or telling him he is amazing or subtly bringing up something that the redhead is amazing at— which is a lot if you ask his real friends— and is not just him, Cherry and Joe too, and Shadow and Miya would help in their own and tsundere way, everything to make sure Reki really believes he is more than enough for them, that he doesn’t need to be the best, that he just needs to be him. 

So far that has worked pretty well, even if Reki has his bad days, at the end he always made it through them, and every single time Langa is there with him. 

Right now they are happily chatting with Miya and Joe while waiting for Cherry and Shadow, the former had an appointment with a client and the latter had to help his manager to prepare some arrangements for a wedding. 

As they talk among themselves a guy, the same height as Langa and about his and Reki’s age, with pitch dark hair and brown eyes approaches them, he has a rock star aesthetic and is one of the famous names around “S” he is kind of new though, but that just talks about his skill level. 

Yoshio is his name, as soon as they see him approaching all of them grimace, the boy has his reputation not just for being a very skilled skater but also for being a total jerk. He is rude and likes to humiliate people with less skills than him, which of course put the gang on edge, is not just something they really hate but they are also kind of protective of Reki and even if Yoshio hasn’t said anything to him yet they won’t let their guard down to a possible threat to their sunshine friend. 

Because during Reki’s absence and during his struggle to retake his self confidence they all realized that Langa was not the only one missing him, they all did, they all developed a soft spot for the redhead even if some of them prefer to deny it, so is pretty natural that all of them became like an army of overprotective two paternal figures, an old brother, a younger brother slash cat-son and best friend slash boyfriend— because honestly the only ones that don’t see how obviously in love Reki and Langa are, are the teens themselves— much to the redhead’s embarrassment and fake annoyance, because he feels really happy to have friends that would have his back. 

Back to Yoshio, this was not the first time he tried to approach any of them, he has already tried to get on Joe’s and Miya’s good graces and he tried to approach Cherry once, though the pink haired man cut him straightforward, they wonder with who he would try to talk this time. 

“Hey!” he says once he gets to them “You are Snow, right?” So Langa this time. Miya is already laughing in his head, Langa is pretty airheaded with everything that is not skateboarding or Reki, so the mental image of Yoshio being dismissed by a blank faced Langa is just hilarious. 

Said airhead just stares at him with a blank and almost bored expression. “Yeah” he answers simply, normally he would ask who he was because he often forgets the faces and names of other skaters unless they challenge him— or if they are particularly rude to Reki— but he does know who this boy is, his reputation is hard to ignore, he just hopes he would leave them alone, the guy is the opposite of friendly and he just want to skate with his friends. 

Yoshio doesn’t seem bothered by the dry answer, though. “I’m Yoshio but I’m sure you already heard about me” He says with a smug face. Langa keeps the same blank expression when he replies. 

“Yeah…” 

And then he returns his attention to the conversation he was having with his friends. Yoshio seems a little taken back this time, but he brushes it off, Langa is also starting to get known for his lack of attention to certain things. 

“You know I was with some friends and we think it could be awesome if you join us for a while, what do you say?” He asks confident in himself and that the big Snow would like to spend some time with him since he had a pretty good reputation as skater in “S” Snow surely would like to get to know some future competence, besides he prides himself for being a natural skater, sure his skills are enough to impress at least one of the big names in “S” 

However Langa’s reply is nothing like he thought.

“I’m sorry but I’m already with my friends so no thanks” He says straightforward while putting an arm around Reki— who blushed a little but Langa doesn’t notice— Yoshio is taken back again, he really thought at least Snow would like to be friends with him, he is as cool as him after all, well… maybe it is because he already was talking with his friends, not biggie he could fix it. 

“Oh, is okay, we would love to get to know Miya and Joe too if they want to come” He says casually, totally missing the way the people in front of him glare at him— at least the people he was talking to— neither of them miss the way he completely forgot about Reki, not even a ‘The redhead can also come’ that would have been better than just ignore his presence, they don’t miss the way Reki stiffen either— much less Langa who has his arm around his shoulders— or the way he shifts a little uncomfortable, they could already hear the self doubting whispers forming on his head, not like they would let them get stronger. 

But first, it’s time to get rid of some garbage. 

“I don’t spend my time with boring idiots. Thank you very much” Miya snarls, not even glancing at him as he takes out his switch, Joe doesn’t say anything but the way he is looking at him should be enough to get the message clear and Langa… 

“I’m pretty fine with my friends” he says, tightening his grip around Reki “So please leave us alone” 

Yoshio scowls but he understands he is not wanted there. “Sure…” he says grumpy and walks away. Once he is out of sight Reki released a breath he didn’t know he was holding. They immediately retake their previous conversation like nothing happened and even if Langa’s hold of his shoulders is still firm around him— his silently way of reassuring him— he is grateful neither of them push about the topic, he feels even better when he founds that this time he doesn't feel as bad as he normally does. 

* * *

Things are as calm as they can be at “S” for some time until one day Yoshio decides to approach Langa again. 

As skilled and as idiot as he is, Yoshio is also very stubborn and pretty blinded by his own ego. So far he just thought Miya was being just a brat because he was on the national team and probably Joe didn't want to spend time with more teenagers, at least for now, maybe he just needed more good fame and he is sure being friends with Snow will gain him some points, the same with Cherry Blossom. 

That’s why he hopes that maybe if he approaches Snow when he is alone he would agree to spend some time with him and his group. 

Though it was easier said than done, if he wasn’t skating then he was with either Cherry, Joe, Miya or Shadow— he honestly thinks the old man is strange so he prefers to avoid the punk— he also notices a redhead that seems to be _always_ with Snow but he doesn’t have any idea of who the hell he is. 

He tried to ask around, surely if he is always glued to Snow he must be another big name right? But nobody seems to know who he is.

_“Uh, who?”_

_“The redhead? I don’t give a shit, he is not important”_

_“Uh, that loser? I wonder how it is that Snow and the others still keep him around, must be some charity work or something.”_

_“Ha! That loser couldn't even win against Shadow, I don’t know why he hangs around him anyway”_

_“I honestly don’t know anything about him, he is just the guy that hangs out with Snow”_

_“Pfff, don’t know dude, but who cares? He is just a nobody”_

Every answer he got was similar, his conclusion: That boy is just some random dude that was lucky enough to be pitied by the stars from “S” to let him be around them, so he doesn’t need to worry about him. 

Finally one night he sees Snow alone… kind of, he is with the redhead but the guy is nothing important, surely Snow would be grateful to be away from him; so he approaches them, the closer he gets the more he can hear the red head’s voice, is loud and too energetic… _Is annoying_ … _Surely Snow would appreciate a break from that loser_. 

“Hey, Snow!” Langa instantly grimaces at hearing Yoshio and almost on instinct he puts an arm around Reki, bringing him closer. Reki blushes a little, even if he himself is a touchy person he is sure he would _never_ get used to _Langa_ being the one to start the physical contact between them. Still the butterflies on his stomach doesn’t help him to ignore the uncomfortable feeling that also sets on his guts at seeing that guy approaching them. 

“Hey…” he replies dryly, not wanting to deal with this when he was so happy listening to Reki talk about a cool board a guy from another city commissioned, he is very proud of him, this was a huge sale. 

“Now that you are by yourself I was wondering if you would like to practice some tricks with me and my friends?” He asks simply, like he just asked about the weather, Langa is not a person who gets angry often, annoyed? Sure, but plainly angry? Actually not, but this guy seems to have a talent to make him feel like that _‘by myself? He doesn’t see Reki just besides me?_ ’ he thinks bitterly. The feeling just gets worse when he sees the clearly strained smile in Reki’s face. 

“No” He says straightforward to the point, if the guy is not going to even acknowledge Reki’s presence then he is not going to bother to be nice in the slightest. He is about to walk away with Reki when Yoshio talks again. 

“What? Why?!” he asks clearly disgusted by the answer he got, he doesn’t understand, he is cool and skilled, he knows Snow likes to skate against strong opponents, so why not go with him? 

“I’m with my best friend and you are honestly not the most friendly company either” Langa states matter-of-fact-ly, because even if he wasn’t with Reki, Yoshio is really a jerk. 

Yoshio ignores completely the part about him not being a wanted company and just focuses on the fact that Snow is apparently turning him down because of the redhead nobody besides him… and that said redhead is his best friend too… he doesn't get it. At all. 

The big names should associate themselves with just the best and that loser is clearly just some average skater, and he must be dull and boring for being barely known as ‘the dude that is always with Snow’. 

So why does he prefer to spend time with him? Yoshio is talented and well known in “S'' by now, he is a true challenge, and the redhead what? Nobody knows his name! 

“Do you mean that slime? You rather skate with him than with me?” He asks mockingly, Yoshio has heard Miya calling the redhead a slime— a good name if you ask him so he decides to use it too— and he assumed that was a mocking name, if he messes with him then sure Snow is just messing around too, there is no way… 

“Yes” 

Yoshio has to restrain a yelp, is he being serious?? Snow is looking at him with a bored expression and he feels insulted. 

He can understand why Snow would prefer Cherry, Joe or Miya’s company over his, hell! He understands why he would rather hang out with Shadow, but the slime? 

“I don’t get it” He says before Langa and Reki could leave “ Why waste your time with a lowlife like him? What has that nobody that I don’t? At least people here know my name!” The teen all but barks at them and Langa can feel his blood boiling, however before he could act Joe and Cherry step in. 

“And I don’t think you would ever get it taking into account your poor view of the world and the single brain cell of yours that already has troubles staying alive” Cherry says as he and Joe appear out of nowhere, placing a comforting hand in Reki’s head and sending Yoshio a deadly glare. Joe puts a hand on Langa’s shoulder to calm him down, knowing the blue-haired boy is boiling inside despite his cool face, while also sending a glare of his own to the rude skater. 

Yoshio growls under his breath, so even Cherry and Joe are with that nobody? He wants to retort but a single glare of the three of them is enough to shut him down before he could even open his mouth. 

Langa still wants to give him a piece of his mind though… and he does. 

“And answering your question, Reki is the one who taught me how to skate, he made my board so it will fit my needs and style, he makes everything funny and is million times nicer and kinder than you, he is so friendly and bright that it’s still a wonder for me how is that exist people like you that couldn’t see that and that’s not even the start of it” 

Langa talks with such fondness that everyone could have thought he was no longer angry, however Reki could tell the boy was still sending daggers to the other teen, he knows him the best after all. The butterflies on his stomach decide to go wild at what he said and he is having some troubles concentrating in the actual conversation, and then Langa decides to fry his brain with what he says next. 

Langa sees Yoshio dead in the eye and his voice comes out smug and proud when he talks. 

“Reki is all the good things you could never be” 

Yoshio feels a punch in his ego, Reki only can think that Lang is definitely exaggerating before his brain totally shuts down, Langa is just smiling proud, totally unaware of the effect of his words on the boy besides him and probably unaware of his own blush as well, Joe and Cherry for their part just share an exasperate yet fond look, wondering how the hell these two can do displays like that so often and still be dancing around each other, they swear… 

After that Langa simply walks away with Reki, Cherry and Joe send Yoshio one last glare before joining them. 

Yoshio can only grind his teeth and thank that nobody was there to see his shameful ass. 

Or that was what he thought. 

The next night at “S” there are some people whispering about how the big Yoshio was turned down by the cool Snow because of the slime redhead he always hangs out with. They are mocking him about how pathetic he must be for being ignored for some random amateur. 

It 's humiliating. 

And what makes it worse is the fact that Snow even seems _eager_ to be seen by the redhead, for what he has seen he is always looking for his attention and always seems ridiculously happy every time the slime prizes him or when he hugs him at the end of every beef, not matter if he wins or not, it seems something that people at “S” doesn’t understand but simply accepted as it seems like the natural thing for Snow and the redhead. That doesn’t help Yoshio to feel less insulted or confused. 

It doesn't make any sense, why is a slime better than him? Why is he the one abashed? He keeps ranting internally when an idea crosses his mind. Why not humiliate the slime then? That way everybody will know he is not any better than him and it will help to make that redhead understand his place. 

The thing is how. 

Confronting him doesn’t seem as a wise move, the guy is almost never alone, he is always either with Snow, Miya, Cherry, Joe or Shadow, the few times he catches the redhead alone he can’t get even a few meters near him without feeling a heavy glare at the back of his skull, it unnerves him especially when he can’t for the life of him point from where the glare comes from, he tries five times before a gut feeling tells him that a private threat is: a) technically impossible and b) probably bad for his well being for some reason, he is not idiot enough to test his luck. 

But, there are still other ways, more public and humiliating ways, like a beef. 

He has heard how the redhead has lost some beefs against Shadow, besides the boy doesn’t seem to be the kind to turn down one, even if he does he will just bother him until he accepts, some well placed insults should be enough to push his buttons. 

“Hey, slime! I challenge you to a beef!” He declares smugly to the redhead who is currently talking animatedly with Miya. Reki sighs deeply, the guy makes him feel on edge, after a long talk with Cherry he understands he doesn’t have to put up with him, so he won’t. 

“I pass” he says short and straight to the point, thinking that Langa would be proud. 

But Yoshio won’t take a no for an answer. “What? You are afraid, loser?” He mocks him, a shit eating grin plastered on his face, a grin Reki and all his friends really want to slap off of his face. 

“No, I just don’t have the energy to put up with a clown” Reki states, confident with a small tease in his tone, besides him Miya looks proud, sticking out his tongue to the other teen. With that both males walk away to meet with Snow and Cherry. 

That is not the last time he challenges Reki, everytime the sunshine boy turns his challenges down, no matter how much he taunts him, sometimes he has to cut it short because either Shadow, Cherry, Joe or Snow glare at him. That doesn’t stop him though, he is stubborn and it pays off eventually. 

After what feels like weeks of the same Reki’s patience— along with the other’s— gets thin and he finally gives in. 

“Fine! I’ll skate against you, jeez just leave me alone after that!” Reki all but screams at Yoshio, already very fed up with him. His friends are not very convinced but they are as fed up as him with the rude skater. 

Yoshio for his part feels pretty satisfied, it’s time to use his ultimate idea, the idea itself is pretty childish, he has to admit, but it will do what he wants: humiliate the slime. 

“Fine, if you win I’ll leave you alone, but when I win then you will have to wear a dress of my election next night here!” He exclaims produly and eager to see the redhead's ashamed expression… but… 

“Eh? A dress? Pfff, I thought you would be more original but it’s fine I guess” Reki seems un-bothered by the dare, in fact, he looks pretty calm. 

WHY IS HE SO CALM?! 

His reaction is absolutely the opposite of what Yoshio expected, he was hoping to see him freak out, angry, even flustered but the guy seems bored at best!

“Uh?! Wha-” before he could protest Laga tugs Reki by his sleeve and leads him away.

“UH?! WAIT I’M NOT...” 

“Reki already agreed to race you, there is no need to keep listening to you, so until tomorrow night” Langa says above his shoulder, ending the confrontation there. Yoshio grinds his teeth, fine, he got what he wanted and he is sure winning against that loser could be as easy as eating cake, and even if the slime indeed has some talent he has some tricks under his sleeve, this is “S” after all. 

The next night at “S” Yoshio feels pretty confident while he waits at the start line with a black bag for Reki to come. The grin already plastered on his face grows wilder at seeing a moph of red hair approaching him. 

“Hey, slime! This is the dress you will have to use when I win!” He exclaims with a mocking tone, Reki just stares blankly at the bag and then turns to his friends. Yoshio clenches his jaw ready to complain but a kick on his knees from Miya has him hissing in pain. 

“What the hell brat?!” he hisses at the middle schooler. Miya looks at him with an angry expression mixed with what has to be some haughtiness. 

“First of all, you shouldn’t underestimate Reki and second I’m the only one who can call him slime, got it?” The last part is hissed with bitterness and Yoshio can’t bring himself to retort. 

“Let’s get done with this already, shall we?” Reki says bored, Yoshio’s eyes twitch, he can’t wait to put that guy in his place. He hands the bag to one of his friends and gets into position along with Reki. 

The lights turn on and then the final one signals their start. Both skaters run and jump into their skateboards, taking speed and ready to win. 

For the first part of the race they are pretty tied, Yoshio having the lead but Reki following very close. And then Reki takes the advantage in the first turn, using the trick Miya taught him for his race against the one who must not be mentioned. 

Yoshio, despite not wanting to admit it, is impressed. He thought that all the redhead could do was just step on the board without falling, but he nailed that trick and even passed him. 

Wait… 

THE SLIME PASSED HIM! 

Yoshio snaps out of his shock to see Reki’s back becoming smaller every second as he advances far away. No! He couldn’t let this happen. 

From here the race gets more interesting, a continuous battle to keep the lead, is just at the middle of the path that Yoshio understands that Miya was right, he shouldn’t have underestimated the redhead, fortunately for him, he doesn't care to do whatever that it takes to win. 

He uses fireworks just like Shadow but unlike him who uses small ones to scare or mess up with the balance if his opponent, Yoshio uses more dangerous ones, bigger or with more power of explosion. Also, Shadow knows he plays dirty but he is not cruel, he always throws his fireworks to the wheels or to places he knows won't cause severe damage. Yoshio doesn't care if Reki ends up in the ER, he has seen what Adam is capable of doing so who says he can’t try to cause similar damage? 

So he is pretty careless about Reki when he throws at him his very much bigger and dangerous fireworks, Reki’s friends are beyond worried and angered, even Shadow, he recognizes he plays dirty but all of them also can say he is at least careful enough to not provoke a serious accident. 

Fortunately for them— and unfortunately for Yoshio— Reki dodges the projectiles easily, after so many beefs against Shadow avoiding fireworks is like a kids game by now. 

Yoshio is not happy, he is still behind and the fireworks are not working. But he has one more ace under his sleeve, he just needs to catch up to use it. 

Yoshio lowers his body to gain some speed and be side by side with Reki, it is a dangerous thing to do in the section they are currently skating, the path is irregular and there is a turn near. However, if things go as Yoshio planned he would have enough time to decelerate before the turn. 

Just as he gets side to side with Reki he tries to catch his attention. 

“Hey, Slime I’m curious, why does Snow and the others let you hang out with them? They must feel pity for you!” He snarls with venom in his voice but Reki doesn’t spare him a single glance, looking ahead he sees the turn is too close, he doesn’t have time for this, putting a little more effort he pushes harder despite it not being a safe move, Reki as he thought doesn’t try to do the same, just as he gets a little ahead of him he turns to look at him. 

“Hey, Slime!” Reki doesn’t pay attention to him, but they are practically face to face and that’s all he needs. 

“Smile!” He says as he pulls out a flash from his hoodie, the light is not just too bright for it to be even considered safe for use, it’s also intermittent. Reki inmediately yelps in what has to be pain from the sudden exposure to such a light, the interminet of the flash doesn’t help either, it just make things worse and Reki can feel a headache forming, he is already pretty sensitive to this kind of lights, this is a torture for his eyes.

Naturally he falls from his board due to the temporary blindness caused by the flash, thanks to the speed and the irregular ground his fall is _hard,_ he hits his head and rolls over the dirt until he comes to an abrupt stop some meters away from where Yoshio pulled out the flash. 

He lays motionless on the floor, feeling a huge headache and his eyes burning. Reki’s friends watch in horror from the moment Yoshio plays his dirty trick and all of them scream Reki’s name as he hits the ground, without missing a beat all of them run towards Shadow’s car, he Miya and Langa go inside and drive to go for Reki, Cherry and Joe following each one on their own bike. 

Once they arrive Langa gets out almost flying and is kneeled besides his friend, cradling him between his arms. 

“Reki? Can you hear me?” Reki brings his hands to his head and squeezes his eyes shut, a groan escaping from his mouth. 

“My head feels like it will explode” he manages to say through the pain. 

“Are you feeling dizzy? Want to throw up?” Langa asks for protocole, knowing well how affected Reki is for bright and intermittent lights, already having to deal with one of his overloads from the lights and knowing what to look for and what to do. 

Reki just nods whining, Langa really hates whenever his best friend has an overload— like that time when he convinced him to leave early from that classmate's birthday party with discotheque lights— his mind right now is torn between the concern for the redhead’s well being and the rage towards Yoshio for doing this. Though, another groan from Reki makes him put all his focus on his friend, he is trying to open his eyes. 

He places a hand gently on Reki’s eyes “Not here Reki, is too bright, let's wait until we get you into Shadow’s car and we get into the road where there are less lights, okay? I got you” The Canadian assures softly, again Reki just nods and it seems the movement makes him uncomfortable, Langa makes a mental note to not move his head too much, already fearing for a concussion. 

“Can you tell me where other parts hurt?” The blue-haired teen whispers, that was a nasty fall and he wants to know how much Reki is injured. 

“My left wrist and my right knee” he croaks, Langa can see some tears escaping from his tight closed eyes. _I’m killing that asshole!_ He thinks to himself before Miya pats his shoulder, Reki’s board under his arm. 

“Come on, we need to bring him to the hospital” Langa nods and Miya returns to the car. 

Langa lifts his best friend carefully bridal style, just as he is about to put Reki inside the car Yoshio comes with the same bag he had at the start of the race and a shit eating grin he is so tempted to punch off of his face. The only reason he doesn’t jump to attack is because Reki is on his arms. 

“Well, you lose, loser! I can’t wait to see you in this lovely dress next night!” He mocks as he literally throws the bag at Reki’s lap, the boy wincing at the sudden voice and movement. Langa growls under his breath, the only thing restraining him from screaming at the other skater being the fact that it will hurt Reki right now. Fortunately Cherry and Joe arrive before Yoshio could say more.

“We get it kid, now leave” Joe growls to the teenager who wisely decides to leave, not before laughing mockingly to the suffering redhead. Langa ignores him and finally goes inside the car, he puts Reki on his lap and cradles him making sure he is the most comfortable possible. 

“If you feel worse or anything else starts to hurt tell me okay? Are you comfortable like this or you prefer to lie down?” He whispers softly, Reki buries his face on his shoulder, his voice comes muffled and crackled but he can hear him. 

“I’m fine like this… I’ll tell you if I feel worse” satisfied with the answer, Langa nods to Shadow and they drive to the hospital. During the travel Reki makes an attempt to open his eyes, which is less painful than in the path of “S” but he still has some trouble, he manages to open them though, seeing some white spots on his vision. 

They arrive and Reki is treated immediately, he have sprained his left wrist— _again_ , Langa takes a mental note to be extra careful for now on with that wrist— has a minor sprain on his right knee, he could walk but with care and has to bandage the knee, Langa makes another mental note: Reki can’t skate for now and he has to make sure he doesn't walk too much, the effects of the flash will fade on its own but the doctor recommended to avoid bright lights for now, they give him some painkillers that help but made him sleepy. Finally his head, he has a concussion, the doctor says he could go home but needed someone to monitor him every hour to make sure there is no serious damage; Langa immediately texts his mom saying he will stay the night at Reki’s home, she agrees and just asks to thank his family and give her greetings. 

After that he helps Reki, who is almost asleep from the painkillers, to get inside the car again, Cherry and Joe has to go but say they will visit Reki tomorrow, Shadow leaves them at the redhead's home saying he and Miya will visit too, Langa thanks them and goes inside the house. 

He carries Reki to his room, his friend is too tired and sore to complain, once in the room he is thankful for the open window Reki uses to sneak out to go to “S'' it lets in the light of the moon so he doesn’t have to turn on the lights. He sets the redhead carefully on his bed, he takes out his shoes and pants, so Reki can sleep more comfortable, Langa sets some alarms for the controls the doctor said they need to make, finally he simply sits besides him on the bed and strokes Reki’s red hair, lullig him into a well deserved rest for now, sure that his friend is asleep he finally brings himself to relax a little, he stands up and goes to the closet to pull out his pajamas, they had had so many sleepovers that they have their own things at each other’s homes. 

Changed, he gets into the bed as near as he can from his friend without compromising his injured limbs, he retakes the strokes on the soft and rebel red hair, ready for the long night they have ahead. 

The next day Reki seems a lot better than before, he is still sore but Langa is glad to see him being his usual sunshine self. Reki’s mother is not surprised to see him at the morning and she seems very satisfied with the explanation they gave her about Reki’s new injuries, they said he tried to avoid crashing against a cat that appeared out of nowhere while they were skating in the park, Reki fell in the wrong way and that’s why he was so hurt, that wouldn’t be the first time that something like that _actually_ happened, Mrs. Kyan knows skateboarding is a rude sport and his son is already kind of clumsy sometimes, she just lectures him about being more careful and thanks Langa for taking care of him.

He stays for breakfast and then returns to his house, promising he will come back after lunch, Mrs. Kyan even asks him to bring his mother, something about a cake recipe she wants to share, he smiles saying he will, it makes him happy seeing that even his mother gained a new friendship with a Kyan. 

That afternoon the Hasegawa family arrive at the Kyan home, the mothers immediately go to the kitchen already talking animatedly about the cake there are going to bake, Nanako makes sure to ask about Reki first and all of them decide he will the first one to taste the cake once they are done, Langa immediately goes to the redhead’s room, he knocks softly and enters when a small ‘come in’ is heard. 

He finds Reki on his bed reading a book, he feels still a little sensitive towards some lights so he has avoided his phone or laptop for now, he takes a seat besides him and offers to read for him, so he doesn’t have to tire out his sight, besides is a nice practice for his own reading. Reki happily takes the offer and they spend their time like that, with Langa reading in a soft voice, even with the difficulties and he asking for help when he gets to a part he can’t understand, is nice, it feels warmth, even sweet the Canadian dares to think. At some point he feels a small weight on his shoulder, Reki’s head is resting on it though his eyes are still open. 

“Sorry!” Reki says once he notices his friend stops reading and tries to pull off but Langa’s gentle hand on his hair rests his head back to his shoulder. 

“Is okay, you sure still feel kinda tired and sore, this is fine” He assures him softly and despite feeling embarrassed— and a little panicked because he is sure he just fell for his best friend even more— Reki hums gladly and with that Langa retakes the reading. 

After some pages of the science fiction book they were reading, their moms call them to enjoy the cake, as if on cue, Shadow, Miya, Joe and Cherry also arrive to visit as they promised. After so much time of know each other and being friends it was just natural that the gang would meet the other’s families at some point, the first ones were Langa and Reki’s mothers and Reki’s sister from when they boys brought them to Joe’s restaurant, that night they met Joe and Cherry, or more like Kojiro and Kaoru. 

Then was Miya, they met him because the kid spent a good amount of time with them, the last one was Shadow, that was because both of the women have visited the flower shop he works at in different times with their sons. They introduced the man as Hiromi. 

They know them as the people who sakte with their sons.

They all have a nice time, sharing the delicious cake and just talking among themselves. 

Once the sky gets dark all the guests— minus the Hasegawa family— leave, not before the gang agrees to meet at Joe’s restaurant the next “S” night so Reki can change there, the bag with the infamous dress is still in Shadow’s car, he says he hasn’t seen it yet and they agree to wait until Reki has to wear it. 

“You know, you don’t seem all that bothered about wearing a dress” Miya points out while they are in the front of the house about to leave. That’s right, Reki doesn’t seem embarrassed or bothered at all. 

“Why should I? Is just a dress” Reki replies like it was the most obvious thing in the world. 

Everybody looks at him a little confused, they really expected him to be at least annoyed for using ‘girls clothes’. Watching everybody’s expression Reki huffs annoyed. “Come on guys! Don’t tell me you really believe that things like clothes have gender! Is just a piece of fabric, man wears robes or other kind of skirts in other cultures, is literally just clothes is stupid to say is juts for girls!” The injured teen rants to them, they just blink but smile nothentless, of course Reki would think like that. 

“Of course we don’t, it's just we thought you would feel annoyed for wearing a dress” Joe answers for all of them with a relaxed smile. Reki also relaxes, happy that his friends don’t have that kind of retrogaged thoughts, until… 

“Wait, you really thought I minded? I feel insulted!” he poust at them, earning some chuckles for them and an adoring look from Langa, which is not missed by the rest except for Reki. 

“Ha! jokes on Yoshio then, I bet he made that stupid beef because he thought you will feel humiliated by this” Miya snarls, making them laugh again. 

“Well, I couldn't expect more from a troglodyte like him” Cherry says, looking at his smartwatch. “Is getting late, we are leaving, see you in a few days and please Langa make sure this idiot doesn't hurt himself any further” Reki makes an indigated sound. 

“I will” Langa simply replies, with that their friends leave and they go inside the house to watch some TV with their families. 

The night in which Reki will have to pay his beef with Yoshio comes and just as they agreed they all meet at Joe’s restaurant and wait for Reki to change, Shadow handed Reki the black bag and Joe let him change in the bathroom. 

Inside Reki is the first one to see the dress. 

He suddenly doesn't feel too calm about this. What the hell Yoshio???!! 

Yeah, the boy surely thought Reki would feel humiliated for wearing a dress, which just like Miya said the joke was on him, he didn't mind, clothes are just clothes, the most Reki would feel may be a little uncomfortable because skirts and dresses are just not his style, but this??? 

Reki really expected to see something obnoxious, after all Yoshio wanted to make him feel ashamed, maybe a dress too pink to watch it without burning your eyes, or something with lots of ribbons, even a wedding dress! But this was far beyond anything Reki could have imagined, maybe Yoshio is worse than he thought, because honestly he doesn’t even want to guess from _where_ he got _that_ dress. 

The redhead sighs, surely it will look less… horrible? once on him, right? He surely wishes it won’t be that bad. 

He starts to take out his clothes, being careful with his wrist and knee that are still bandaged, he doesn’t need more lectures from Cherry about being careful with his injuries or more worried looks from Langa, thank you very much. Then he takes the offending piece of fabric between his hands and grimaces at it. 

He wants to punch Yoshio in the face right now. 

He starts to get dressed and… is almost unnerving how the dress fits so well taking on account how small it looks, granted, the dress is tight, it fits almost like a second skin but he doesn’t struggle to put it on and Reki honestly doesn’t know how to feel, God! Yoshio knew his size or he was hoping that if the dress fitted too small it would be more embarrassing?

Once dressed and with his clothes packed in the same black bag he takes a look in the mirror of the bathroom. Watching his reflex there is just one thing on his mind. 

_I’m so fucked._

* * *

Outside the others are getting a little impatient— and by others we mean Shadow and Miya— Reki is taking too long. 

When Cherry and Joe are also changed in their skate attire and there is no sign of Reki they also think he is taking too long for put on a dress. 

“Do you think he is having trouble because of his injuries?” Langa wonders out loud, Miya rolls his eyes, he doesn’t have the patience to deal with Reki’s overprotective boyfriend right now. 

Joe knocks on the door of the man’s bathroom. “Everything alright, kid?” 

Joe’s voice startles Reki, who is still watching himself with his face as red as his hair.

“Y-yeah, I’m f-fine” He cringes at how pitched his voice came. 

“You don’t sound fine to me, what’s wrong?” Joe asks, some concern borning in his voice. 

Reki sighs, looking at himself again he is sure there is no way he can do this, he is so uncomfortable, he is seriously considering never setting foot on “S” again or just face any shit Yoshio could bring for not carrying out the beef. 

The teen clears his throat “I-Is just, I’m not sure I want to do this” he admits, his voice shaking. 

On the other side of the door the others are frowning, something is off. 

“Uh, are you ashamed of wearing the dress? I honestly thought you didn’t give a shit about it” Miya says bluntly. 

“Language!” Cherry corrects Miya, but he had a point, they thought Reki really didn’t care.

Reki huffs, _why him?_

“Is n-not that, I still think is stupid to say dresses are just for girls but” He trails off, he is hesitant until Langa’s concerned vocie is heard through the wood of the door. 

“What’s the matter, Reki?” Langa asks softly. The redhead relaxes a little and decides to just say it. 

“Is just… I… I didn’t take into account that Yoshio would choose something so… revealing” he finally says, making the others frown more. 

“What do you mean by revealing?” Cherry asks getting close to the door. 

“W-well, uh… y-you see” Reki is clearly having a hard time trying to explain himself and Shadow doesn’t have the patience to deal with it, so he simply walks to the door and pulls the door open with more strength than necessary, revealing a blushing and startled Reki wearing a pink dress that seemed taken of some magical girls anime… or more like the hentai version of said anime. 

The dress is of a bright pink, with ribbons and sparkles all over it, the neckline is **_very_ ** pronounced, if Reki was a girl… well you have an idea, also the dress is incredibly tight, it embraces Reki’s thin frame like a second skin leaving little to the imagination, it highlights Reki’s small waist and the skirt is way too short, showing in perfect display Reki’s shapely legs, if Reki bends just a little his underwear will be visible. 

The sight gains different reactions. 

Shadow and Miya explode in laughter, Joe and Cherry’s parental instincts kick in and are ranting internally about how ~~their child~~ Reki won’t go out in public wearing that and thinking in ways to make whatever that might happen to Yoshio to look like an accident. 

As for Langa… Langa feels for the first time what a gay panic is. 

He already knew he likes his friend in a romantic way after that talk he had with his mother the night he lost against Joe in the tournament, it was like an ephiny and it didn’t take much for him to accept it. He knew he was gay since he was like twelve and Reki is just the sunshine incarnated, it’s hard for him to understand how people would not like him, _like really! They don’t have eyes or brain cells?!_

So in more than one occasion he has almost died from an overload of cuteness by Reki, he has blushed at his natural charm, but he has never felt how his brain literally shuts down and he forgets how to breathe. 

Because Reki right now looks breathtaking and like a source of heart attacks. Not like he didn’t look like that before. He always thought Reki is handsome, cute, adorable, even sexy— he is a teenager with hormones and an unfairly beautiful crush don’t judge him! — but this? 

The way the dress embraces Reki’s figure, how it shows his body in a so tempting and teasing way, Reki has a love for oversized clothes so is kind of new to see how well defined his shape is by that dress, how it embraces his waist, the neckline leaving a nice view of his collarbones and his neck, he suddenly remembers something that happened with a classmate some weeks ago, he surprised Reki from behind and tickled him on the neck— he was just bored and knew the redhead hated tickles— Reki was clearly annoyed and when he asked why he said his neck was too sensitive and he hated when people ticked him there, Langa gulps _hard_ at the memory of Reki’s _too sensitive neck_ , neck that is displayed and bare for the world to see, there are also his legs, his _thighs_ that look so smooth and not to mention how adorable his red face looks. 

Yeah, he has seen him showing more skin, shirtless and even touched the soft skin of his torso when they went to the beach but it was different, he wasn’t aware of his feelings then, he felt flustered but he assumed it was because he was shy and never has been at the beach before. But now he knows better and he really wishes he was still oblivious to his feelings, because seeing Reki in that dress, looking so freaking cute and flustered is making things to his heart… and other parts but he won’t ever admit it. 

“Ugh, close your mouth, you are about to drool!”Miya whispers while elbowing his ribs. Langa snaps out his trance— which he wasn’t even aware of— to look startled at Miya who has a smile too knowing for his liking. The blue-haired boy can’t help the blush spreading over his pale cheeks. 

“Jeez! I didn’t know you were into this kind of stuff, and you looked so wholesome” the kid tases him shaking his head, for once the Canadian is speechless at his young friend, if for what he implied or the fact he implied _that_ despite his age he doesn’t know and doesn’t want to know either.

Langa tries to justify himself but all that comes out his mouth are stammered words and mumbles in a strange mix of Japanese and English. Miya laughs at him, he peaks a look at Reki who is too busy yelling at Shadow to stop laughing at him to notice their little interaction, Langa sighs in relief, he feels too embarrassed and he doesn’t need Reki to notice. 

Cherry’s voice catches their attention. 

“Absolutely no! There is no way you are going to "S” wearing that!“ Cherry states immersed in his parental figure mood. Joe immediately agrees, for once, with the man. Reki looks relieved but that doesn’t last. 

“Hey, I get why he doesn’t want to wear that, Yoshio really crossed a line here and I don’t want to know from where the hell he got that dress but… he won’t let Reki alone if he doesn’t fulfill the beef” Miya intervenes, which is very truth much to Reki’s dismay. 

“But we can’t have Reki walking in a public place looking like that! Who knows how many creeps or homophobes are there!” Joe cries sounding pretty much like an overprotective father… which he kind of is by this point. 

“There must be something we can do” Cherry says, rubbing his chin thinking. The others start to discuss ways to get Reki out of this, Langa, however, is not paying attention, Joe’s words floating in his mind. 

Creeps and homophobes.

Right, if Reki goes to “S” everybody will see him like that…. Langa’s chest tightens at the idea in a mix of concern and, even if he is ashamed of the last one, jealousy.

On one hand both the creeps and homophobes have him worried for Reki’s safety, he doesn’t want him to be harassed or assaulted. Also, even if he likes to think that is more the people that think that there is nothing wrong with a guy wearing a dress or ‘girl clothes’ there is still the worry at the back of his head about how much idiots are at “S” and how he really doesn’t want them to have one more thing to bother Reki with. 

A shudder comes down his spine at the sudden thought that even Adam could see him like this and he immediately hates the idea, the dude is already a creep and he doesn’t want to expose Reki to him more than he already has, Reki is still scared of him and with reason, he wants that bag of shit as far as he could from his best friend. 

On the other hand… he doesn’t want anybody to see Reki like this, to see how breathtaking he can look, an uncomfortable feeling settles in his chest, anger rises in him at the thought of people looking at Reki’s exposed skin, is he jealous? He doesn’t have a problem with their friends but… Joe and Cherry are pretty much their parents, with Shadow and Miya there is an age gap and even if that wasn’t a problem, they are like brothers for Reki and him— Miya is like their cat son when Cherry and Joe are not present— so he is pretty sure they don’t count, buy anybody else? The mere idea makes him uncomfortable and angry, he wants to be the only one— because it is pretty clear his friends don’t count— to get to see this side of Reki… maybe he _is_ jealous. 

But he can’t bring himself to care, not when all he wants is to find a way to let Reki carry out with the beef but without anyone noticing, he is thinking about it when an idea crosses his mind. 

“Shadow!” He exclaims out of the blue catching everybody’s attention. He looks at the man with makeup with determination. 

“Please borrow us your cape” 

“What is this? Where is the dress?!” Yoshio all but barks at Reki, he approached them as soon as he noticed them arriving at “S” and the first thing he did was make fun of Reki until he noticed he was not wearing the dress… or so he thinks. Langa can’t help but growl under his breath, he doesn’t consider himself a violent person but after what the other teen did to Reki he can’t brush aside the need to punch him until his knuckles hurt. 

“Actually I’m wearing it, under the tunic” Reki explains with a smirk and even opens the tunic a little to show that, indeed, he is using the damn dress, he quickly closes it again. 

Langa’s idea was perfect, after all Yoshio never said anything about covering the dress so nobody would see and Shadow’s tunic is perfect to hide it without making Reki stand out. Of course the rude skater is not happy with this. 

“This was not the beef, Slime! Take off that cape or…” Yoshio growls and makes the motion to grip the cape but Shadow’s hand takes his wrist before he could take a step closer to Reki. 

“Or what, brat?” Shadow growls at the teen, Langa immediately steps closer to Reki, an arm shielding him from Yoshio. 

Yoshio for his part swallows in fear and winces a little for the pressure Shadow is inflicting on his wrist. 

“Besides, the beef was for Reki to wear the dress you chose if he lose, you never said the dress had to be seen by everybody so technically Reki is receiving the punishment” Cherry adds as he walks to them and puts a hand on Reki’s shoulder, Joe and Miya also appear besides them, each glaring at the angry teen. 

Yoshido, outnumbered has no other choice but back off. He frees his wrist and flees the scene. 

After that the night is pretty calm, or at least as calm as it can be in a place like “S”. Reki decides to just watch, he is still healing from his knee and doesn’t want any accident that could reveal the dress. Langa decides to keep him company, practically attaching himself at Reki’s side, just in case.

At some point, however, in which he sees Yoshio all by himself he asks Cherry to take care of Reki while he is gone. 

“I want a drink” he says. Cherry merely nods and stays glued at Reki’s side. 

After fifteen minutes, a long time to go for a drink, Langa returns without a drink but with a very satisfied smile. 

Reki doesn’t miss it. 

As soon as Langa is back at his side he asks in an accusatory tone. “What did you do?” Of course Langa ignores the question. 

“Mom will make poutine for dinner this friday, wanna come? You could also stay the night” He invites him like he doesn’t know pretty well Reki knows he _did_ something. 

“Hey! Answer my question!” 

“I’m sure mom would love if you come, she adores you” Once again Langa plays dumb, he _does_ knows Reki isn’t buying it but he also knows he will drop it soon if he keeps evading it, besides he does really want to know if Reki will stay at his home on friday, he loves spending time with him, his mother being happy about it is also true, she loved Reki the moment he introduced them, of course she did, it’s _Reki_ he is talking about, it makes him happy to know his mom adores the guy he is love with so much. 

Reki for his part just sighs resigned, knowing Langa, _and he does know him_ , he is sure he won’t get any answer from him; that’s fine though, because he knows Langa will tell him if he finds it important, if not, then he is sure is nothing to worry about. 

“I’ll be there” He simply states and smiles softly at his best friend, Langa returns a smile of his own, the one that is reserved just for Reki and they return their eyes to their friends who are trying new tricks. 

That night, almost as Reki and Langa arrive at the former’s house the redhead changes to his pajamas and they burn the damn dress. 

Needleless to say, after that night Yoshio never bothered Reki again and every time he sees Langa he would look away scared and just avoid any contact with the two best friends.

Reki, Cherry, Joe, Shadow and Miya are sure Langa did something but it’s not like they are complaining, the guy was a pain in the ass anyways.

“As far as he didn't do something we wouldn't do” Is Joe’s simply comment about the matter, all of them, even Cherry, just agree with it. 

As for Langa? He is just grateful that skirts and dresses are not Reki’s style at all, otherwise he is sure his poor heart couldn’t handle it.


End file.
